Much to give thanks for

I had my appointment with a neurologist yesterday afternoon. It went well. I do not have to have brain surgery. I do not have to have radiation (at least not now). The tumor is benign and located in my cavernous sinus. It is about the size of a large olive to a ping pong ball. It will not spread into brain tissue (that's probably my biggest relief). The only concern for the doctor is that is is constricting the flow of blood through one of the carotid arteries that runs through that sinus. That could be a serious/life-threatening issue. But these tumors grow very slowly and God made our bodies in amazing ways to adapt so it's possible that my body has compensated for the blood flow by the other carotid artery taking over. She is sending on my MRI scans to another doctor for evaluation of this and I may have to go in for another test on this. Right now, this doctor just wants to follow me and in 6 months do another MRI and see if anything has changed. She was able to tell me what to look for that would indicate more growth (worse vision, facial paralysis). The doctor also said that she has never seen a surgery to remove these tumors be completely successful and most often the patient is left with worse symptoms than before the surgery. So if something needs to be done to take care of the tumor, it would be radiation treatment. Of course there is risks in radiation (don't know what those are yet). But for now the news is really good -- just wait and watch. I'm still praying for healing. It would be awesome if they did another MRI and the tumor was gone!
What a week this has been. I have gone from a couple days of panic to a place of peace and trust in knowing God's hand is on my life and He will accomplish His will. I have come to the place where what I want most is that God would be glorified in this. Certain Scriptures have ministered to me like never before. God has not been silent and I am very changed from this experience. Even though this is a quilting blog, I want to be more open about my faith. It is what matters most, and this last week has made that conviction even stronger.
Thank you for your prayers, kind words and encouragement over this last week. It isn't over, but it is good news!